Tag Archives: music

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Playing Left Handed

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I took up the right handed acoustic guitar when I was twelve and played mainly folk through elementary and high school graduating to simple three chord songs rock on an cheap beginner electric.

My chording was never accurate and often misplayed.  So I lost interest.  After retirement I wondered, given I was actually left handed what would happen if I tried a left handed guitar.

Back to Square One

To my surprise my right hand knew no chords.  However, not surprisingly, like riding a bicycle, if I turned the guitar upside down I easily found the chord position and I  could change chords smoothly (albeit without strumming as the strings were upside down).

Searching the internet for some basic training I stumbled on the well known and acclaimed Justin guitar training website packed with useful videos.

Most interesting though was the fact Justin, a life long right handed performer and teacher had decided a couple of years ago to use his own beginners course to teach himself  left handed guitar.

It was a treat for me to see him having the same problems I had and in fact he needed to relearn his chording and changes from the beginning.  This validated what I was experiencing, yes, I needed to start over and train my hands.

Handedness Matters

While my journey playing guitar has really begun anew the good news is my chording and strumming and picking, once relearned, is far better than it ever was.

I am a left hander and although I was guided (forced) to play right handed for years my body and brain really did not want to.

I suspect I will never be a great player but for now anyway I am getting much more personal satisfaction from the experience.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Twenty five or six to four

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In 1969, the keyboardist for the Chicago Tansit Authority (that was the bands original name) wrote a song he titled “Twenty-Five or Six to Four”. The song reached number four on the billboard pop charts in 1970.

A side note is the band changed their name from Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) to just Chicago when the corporation threatened to sue them,  the corporation has a copyright on their name.

The city of Chicago does not copyright their name so an easy solution presented itself.  But I digress, back to the story of the song which the real point of this post.

Without Meaning

Music with meaningful lyrics is great but for me the lyrics don’t have to have deep meaning for me to enjoy the song.  Which brings me to 25 or 6 to 4 which I always enjoyed and thought was a great message song, just not sure what the message was.

Listening to the radio this morning I enjoyed hearing an interview with Danny Seraphine, one of the bands horn players.  He explained the songs lyrics.

And the answer is

When explained, all is clear, although this is not something I would have guessed.  Robert Lamm was working all night on writing a new song.

At around 25 minutes or 26 minutes to 4 am in the morning  he realized the day was breaking and he was still searching for something to say.

Simply put, the song is about the experience of writing the song.  Who knew?  Rhetorical question of course as lots of people probably knew, I just was not one of the.

Even with this revelation though, still a fabulous song.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Blues Image

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Over the years I have massed a large music collection. Although the genre definitely leans toward blues/ rock there is a good representation of pop.  Occasionally, I will highlight some of my gems from the collection in these posts.

Today’s Album – Blues Image by Blues Image

Founded in Florida in 1966 this bands first album was released on Atco records in 1969.  It did not sell well and I picked up a copy from the bargain  bin in 1970.

I was not expecting anything spectacular, the album did not break 100 on the billboard album chart and had no hits.   What a sweet find though, the music simply blew me away.  From jazzy blues to rockin out I found all the tracks strongly appealing.

“Lazy Day Blues ” was a particular standout for me but there are no filler tracks on this album.  Although the All Music Guide rating is only 3.5 stars out of 5 this is a case where I am out of sync with the critics.   The album gets a 5 from me.

There is a really fresh infusion of latin rythms, sharp lyrics (for the time period) and mellow vocals.  The is a blues rock band copying many English blues rockers of the time but with a musical twist.

The band had a breakout hit on their second album “Ride Captain Ride” which lyrically was very much in tune with the youth culture of late 1969 and early 1970.

Sadly though, this terrific group of musicians was a one hit wonder and following personal changes and a lackluster third album faded away to the oldies circut.

If you can find a copy or download it digitally (and it might be hard to do) I strongly recommend giving this album a spin.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

The Groundhogs

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Over the years I have massed a large music collection.  Although the genre definitely leans toward blues/ rock there is a good representation  of pop.

The media ranges from compact disc, cassette tape, vinyl album to digital libraries.  The time periods of original issue peak in the early to mid seventies but overall the collection ranges from the mid ninteen fifties to today.

Randomly, I am going to sneak in a post about some favorite albums. My intention is to write about those hidden gems many listeners are not aware of.

The lack of global popularity could result from the electic nature of the music, or the band just were not in the right place at the right time.  All I highlight will be a personal favorite though.

The Groundhogs

A British based power trio, this group had a number of top ten successes in the UK but not much noticible popularity elsewhere. The base format was blues rock, played loud with lots of base.

The melodies followed typical blues coupled with the atonal singing associated with classic southern negro blues of the thirties and forties.

Sharp Lyrics

With a solid musical foundation of basic blues, the standout talent of this group was their humorous/ satirical lyrics.  For examole two early song/albums  clearly demonstrate this  “Thank Christ for the Bomb ” and “Who will save the world – The Mighty Groundhogs”

A complete package

So sharp witty lyrics with a solid (and loud) rhythm section and vocals you can hear and understand the words alltied together making a great package.

If you are going to give their tunes a spin I suggest you try one of the aforementioned albums

 

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Listen to the Music #11

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On Oct 25th I started a post series that would be about the 37 live rock concerts I have attended in my life so far.

Over time, I am listing the next three best. Ten posts so far covered the top thirty (listed below), today’s covers thirty one to three and I am almost at the end.

Just a reminder; 1) Paul McCartney, 2) Led Zeppelin, 3) Elton John 4)Alice Cooper 5) Al Stewart 6) Queen 7) Bee Gees 8) Deep Purple 9) James Taylor 10)Blue Oyster Cult, 11)Johnny Winter, 12) Uriah Heep 13) The Monkees. 14) 1910 Fruitgum Company 15) Allman Brothers Band 16) Kansas 17) Styx 18) Wishbone Ash 19) Trooper 20) Brave Belt 21) Nazareth 22)BTO 23)Peter Gabriel 24) Bad Company 25) Paul Rogers 26) Jethro Tull, 27) Lady Gaga 28) Jeff Healey 29) Roger Waters 30)Procul Harum

And todays artists;

31) Bon Jovi – I joined my daughter and her friends in attending Bon Jovi.  Talk about energy.  Stand up and shout, I am alive.  Great tunes, fabulous hooks and really easy lyrics.  A real treat for me to be able to attend with one of my children and both had maximum enjoyment (new kids on the block this was not).

32) Maddonna – I saw Maddona in Edmonton as well just a couple of years back.  It was after I had seen Lady Gaga.  I would have said a more spectacular show was not possible and I would have been wrong.  No matter how often I hear it, like a Virgin is always a great song.

33) Harry Belafonte – Some University friends persuaded me to go to a Harry Belafonte concert many years ago at Vancouvers Queen Elizabeth theatre.  I thought I would be mildly entertained, I did enjoy a number of his songs that I had heard listening to my parents records but it wasn’t a rock concert.  Iwas blown away.  Harry B. is probably without exception the best entertainer I have every seen.  Polished but spontaneous this shows stands out in my memory.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Listen to the Music #10

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On Oct 25th I started a post series that would be about the 37 live rock concerts I have attended in my life so far.

Over time, I am listing the next three best. Nine posts so far covered the top twenty seven (listed below), today’s covers twenty-five to twenty-seven.

Just a reminder; 1) Paul McCartney, 2) Led Zeppelin, 3) Elton John 4)Alice Cooper 5) Al Stewart 6) Queen 7) Bee Gees 8) Deep Purple 9) James Taylor 10)Blue Oyster Cult, 11)Johnny Winter, 12) Uriah Heep 13) The Monkees. 14) 1910 Fruitgum Company 15) Allman Brothers Band 16) Kansas 17) Styx 18) Wishbone Ash 19) Trooper 20) Brave Belt 21) Nazareth 22)BTO 23)Peter Gabriel 24) Bad Company 25) Paul Rogers 26) Jethro Tull, 27) Lady Gaga

And today’s list

28) Jeff Healey – On of the best blues musicians for me his guitar playing lets you feel the emotion and his voice is the epitome of what a blues singer should sound like.  jeff is blind but it did not hinder him at all from giving an awesome, spellbinding performance.

29)Roger Waters – I saw his theatrical performance of the wall.  What a show, as much about the performance as it was about the music.  Competently performed and enjoyable.

30) Procul Harum – One of the bands most popular albums was recorded live with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra.  This was in the early seventies and was a favorite album of mine.  I did not see them live until the mid nineties  in Toronto and I was not dissapointed at all.  A fabulous show with their biggest hit ( A Whiter Shade of Pale) still resonated – timeless.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Listen to the Music #9

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On Oct 25th I started a post series that would be about the 37 live rock concerts I have attended in my life so far.

Over time, I am listing the next three best. Eight posts so far covered the top twenty four (listed below), today’s covers twenty-five to twenty-seven.

Just a reminder; 1) Paul McCartney, 2) Led Zeppelin, 3) Elton John 4)Alice Cooper 5) Al Stewart 6) Queen 7) Bee Gees 8) Deep Purple 9) James Taylor 10)Blue Oyster Cult, 11)Johnny Winter, 12) Uriah Heep 13) The Monkees. 14) 1910 Fruitgum Company 15) Allman Brothers Band 16) Kansas 17) Styx 18) Wishbone Ash 19) Trooper 20) Brave Belt 21) Nazareth 22)BTO 23)Peter Gabriel 24) Bad Company

And today’s list

25) Paul Rodgers – the former lead singer of Free and Bad Company is considered by many to be one of the best blues rock singers of the seventies.  This show wher he was billed as a solo artist covered a wide catalogue of including some tunes from the supergroup the Firm in which Paul hooked up with Jimmy Page.  A truly standout show which closed with Free’s biggest hit “All Right Now”

26) Jethro Tull – Ian Anderson was well known for  playing the flute while balancing on one leg.  This show he did not dissapoint.  Ian who was the creative force behind the band is a brilliant musician easily flipping from a standard blues beat to 3/16 time.  This concert was a splendid display of progressive rock rendered live but still sounding great.

27) Lady Ga Ga – although GaG is definitely not a classic rock artist ger music is great and the show was spectacular.  I was not sure if this would be my cup of tea, however I really enjoyed the concert.  Of course it was not just about the music, the spectacle and costumes making it a great experience.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Listen to the Music #7

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On Oct 25th I started a post series that would be about the 37 live rock concerts I have attended in my life so far.

Over time, I am listing the next three best. Six posts so far covered the top eighteen(listed below), today’s covers nineteen to twenty-one.

Just a reminder; 1) Paul McCartney, 2) Led Zeppelin, 3) Elton John 4)Alice Cooper 5) Al Stewart 6) Queen 7) Bee Gees 8) Deep Purple 9) James Taylor 10)Blue Oyster Cult, 11)Johnny Winter, 12) Uriah Heep 13) The Monkees. 14) 1910 Fruitgum Company 15) Allman Brothers Band 16)Kansas 17) Styx  18) Wishbone Ash

And today’s list

19) Trooper – A free concert in Student Union Building at UBC.  I happened on this accidently while resting in SUB between classes (a favorite pastime of mine).  This was a happy accident.  Trooper had relatively significant Canadian fame in the early seventies they never really had much fame beyond the borders.  This was a straight up hard rock party band. In the words of their classic song, I was encouraged to “Raise a little Hell” , what a night.

20) Brave Belt – Randy Bachman quit the Guess Who at the height of their fame.  He went on to found a band with friend Fred Turner and two of his brothers.  He wanted to prove he could make it big outside the Guess Who (and ultimately he did). They toured the country for a  couple of years as Brave Belt, including a live show at the Lonsdale Community centre in North Vancouver.  Brave Belt morphed their sound throughout these two years and I saw them just before they changed their name to BTO (Bachman Turner Overdrive).  At this point they had the BTO sound and although the world had not discovered them yet, I did and they were fabulous.

21) Nazareth – A hard partying Scottish straight up rock band.  For me this was the traditional basic hard rock show.  Not a lot of frills or effects just great tunes played loud and fast.

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Listening to music (con’t) #6

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On Oct 25th I started a post series that would be about the 37 live rock concerts I have attended in my life so far.

Over time, I am listing the next three best. Five posts so far covered the top fifteen (listed below), today’s covers fifteen to eighteen.

Just a reminder; 1) Paul McCartney, 2) Led Zeppelin, 3) Elton John 4)Alice Cooper 5) Al Stewart 6) Queen 7) Bee Gees 8) Deep Purple 9) James Taylor 10)Blue Oyster Cult, 11)Johnny Winter, 12) Uriah Heep 13) The Monkees. 14) 1910 Fruitgum Company 15) Allman Brothers Band

And today’s list

16) Kansas -This band’s biggest hit fits on my top ten list of all time favorite songs ( Dust in the Wind).  Their use of electrified violin and the fact their main genre is a solid blues base make them a favorite artist of mine.  I saw them in a club with a small audience of 2500 and stood right by the stage.  It was memorable.

17)  Styx – I saw them at the Molson amphitheatre in Toronto.    Though I am not a huge fan of progressive rock I do have to admit the live show was fabulous.  Singing and playing right in the audience at times, this was a band that clearly is a crowd pleaser.

18) Wishbone Ash – I first heard them while watching Dick Clarks American Bandstand.  Right from the get go this bands sound caught my attention.  I saw them live a couple of times but the most memorable was at Lulu’s in Waterloo.  Apparently Lulu’s had the longest bar in North America.

 

Random thoughts – keeping you on your toes

Music Media Metrics

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I am sure it will not be a surprise to anyone that music industry revenues have changed enormously in the last ten years.  Both the total amount of revenue and the source.

The Globe and Mail charted key changes in global recorded music industry revenues in today’s paper.  Their source was the International Federation of the phonograph Industry (IFPI)

My Interpretations

From 2005 to 2015 the overall revenue dropped by about $5 billion. Physical media revenues dropped almost $12 billion.  Conversly digital media revenues rose about 6 billion while performance revenues were up a billion.

Also of interest is that overall revenue actually grew a little bit between 2014 and 2015.  This was the first actual growth in overall revenue since 2005.

For me this is an obvious trend .  Consumption of music is going digital.  Duh!

The drop in revenue is probably from the change in business model from direct pay to ad supported free digital music (streaming) . Basically The traditional  radio business model being expanded to digital media as higher margin physical media revenue slips away.

IFPI View

The IFPI views the revenue drop as a symptom of the lower price for digital media resulting in unfair levels of renumeration to the artists.

The obvious answer to this is legistlation to ensure sure artists are fairly compensated.  The next big trend is going to be laws that ensure lobbiests are fairly compensated.

Me, I am more a market supply and demand guy.  If you are not recieving fair return for your music, stop producing.

Of course maybe money is not really the issue as producing music is a joy in and itself and most musicians would do it for free.

Odds are Paul McCartney would still make music even without compensation of $50 million a year.